SHANKAR IAS ACADEMY

Panchsheel And China What in news? Amidst the standoff at Doklam, China has invoked Panchsheel by saying that India has trampled upon the five principles of peaceful co-existence. What is Panchsheel? It a set of  Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence to govern relations between states. They are – Mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, Mutual non-aggression, Non-interference in each other's internal affairs, Equality and mutual benefit, and Peaceful co-existence. It was first indicted in treaty form between China and India in 1954. India viewed the agreement as an opportunity to promulgate its anti-colonial posture. China saw in this expression of ‘Asian solidarity’ a means to check the growing anti-communist sentiments in the West.   Best Study Material for the Preparation UPSC IAS Prelims Mains Exams Did China practise this principle? Within a few months of agreeing to the five principles, China made its first attempt to i...

A Look At Tax Collections What is the issue? Widening tax net and increased tax collections are achievements of the recent government initiatives. However, declining non-individual returns and rising cost of collections call for a closer examination. What are the recent developments? Various policy measures have ensured bringing more people under the  direct tax net  in the recent past. The number of  tax returns  filed recently went up by about 24.6 per cent. The latest  direct tax collections  were marginally higher than that presented in the Revised Estimates in the last Budget. Personal income tax  collections rose by 21 %, compared to 8% in the previous year. Corporation tax  collections rose by 7%, compared to 6% in the previous year. Indirect tax  net is also getting wider because of a rise in the number of entities getting registered under the goods and services tax (GST). ( More than 800 of our students are IAS...